Guard or gate for street-cars, &amp;c.



PATENTEDMARL 5, 1907.

G. A. METGALP.

GUARD 0R GATE FOR STREET CARS, 6w.

' APPLIUATION FILED AUG.28, 1906.

THE NORRIS PETERS cc., wAsHnvaT N. n. c

GEORGE A. METCALF, OF MALDEN, vMASSACHUSETTS.

GUARD OR GATE FOR STREET-CARS, 620.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented March 5, 1907.

Application filed August 28, 1906- erial No. 332,368-

To aZ-Z whomit Wmy concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. METoALF, of Malden, in the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Guards or Gates for Street-Cars, &c., of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to a substantially horizontal elongated guard orgate which is vertically movable to and from its operative position, theguard being in this embodiment of my invention an elongated bar, such asis used on an open street-car having side entrances and exits, the guardbeing adjustable so as to extend across the exits and prevent passagetherethrough and to be moved to the upper portions of the exits topermit passengers to pass under it.

My invention has. for its object to provide simple and effective meansfor supporting a guard or gate of this character in. such manner that itcan be moved vertically from either position to the other by forceapplied at a single point on the guard and at either end thereof, thesupporting means having provisions for equalizin the height of both endsof the guard, so that when displacing pressure is applied to either endthe other end will have a corresponding movement, the guard remainingsubstantially horizontal under all conditions.

The invention consists in the improvements which I will now proceed todescribe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a guard and means forsupporting the same, embodying my inven tion. Fig. 2 represents asimilar view showing a different embodiment of the invention. Fig. 3represents a side elevation showing the embodiment of my inventionrepresented in Fig. 1 applied to a street-car. Fig. 4 represents amodification hereinafter referred to.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all thefigures.

In the drawings, a represents a substair tially horizontal gate orguard, the same being here shown as a narrow elongated bar, such as isordinarily used at the side of an open street-car to obstruct theentrances and exits. The bar is adjustably supported and permitted tomove vertically by means embodying my invention, which comprise a pairof independent cords, supports therefor, and cord-engaging members onthe guard,

the said means having provisions for equalizing the height of the endsof the guard under a? adjustments of which the guard is capab e.

In the embodiment of my invention shown in Figs. 1 and 3, b and 0represent the two independent cords. The cord 6 is attached at one endto a fixed support 6, located above one end. of the guard, and at itsother end to a fixed supportf, located below the opposite end of theguard. The cord 0 is attached at one end to a fixed support g, locatedabove the guard and immediately over the support f, and at its other endto a support 7, located below the guard and immediately under thesupport 6. The guard is provided with cord guiding and deflectingmembers, whereby the central portions of the cords are caused to extendlengthwise of the guard, the ends of each cord being thus oil'set fromeach other. The said members, as here shown, comprise pulleys i i,engaging and deflecting the cord 1), and pulleys j j, engaging anddeflecting the cord 0, the said pulleys studs 7c 7c, affixed to theguard. The supports e f 9 7t may be studs, bolts, or other suitablemembers afiixed to parts of the carbody above and below the spaces inthe sides of the car for the entrance and exit of passengers.

It will be seen that the guard is suspended in the bights or loops ofthe cords b and c, which engage the pulleys j, the said bights supportinboth ends of the guard at an equal height and preventing either end fromdropping below the other. At the same time independent upward movementof either end of the guard is prevented by the bights of the.

cords which engage the pulleys i i. When the guard is moved upwardly,the upper stretches of the two cords extending between the pulleys andthe supports 6 and g are shortened, the lower stretches extending between the pulleys and supports f and h being correspondingly lengthened.An equal movement is imparted to both ends of the guard, so that theguard always remains sub stantially horizontal, it being impossible foreither end to move up ently of the other.

Referring to Fig. 2, b and 0 represent the two independent cords. Thesupports for the cords are pulleys m m m engaged with the cord Z), andpulleys n n if, engaged with the cord 0, the said pulleys being mountedto being mounted to rotate loosely on or down independ- IIO rotate onfixed journals or studs secured to the body of the car above and belowthe guard, the pulleys m m and n n being located above the guard, whilethe pulleys m and n are located below the guard. The cord-engagingmembers on the guard are here shown as eyes or staples 0 0 and p p, themembers 0 and p being at the upper edge and the members 0 and p at thelower edge of the guard. The pulleys m m and n n deflect the cords andcause the central stretches thereof to extend lengthwise of the guardand above the same. The guard is suspended by the engagement of bightsof the cords with the pulleys m and n, so that neither end can dropindependently of the other, independent'upward movement of either endbeing prevented by the dependent bights of the cords engaging thepulleys m and n When the guard is raised, the stretches of the cordsextending upwardly from the engaging member's'o and p are shortened, andthe stretches extending downwardly from the members '0 and p arecorrespondingly lengthened, both ends of the guard being kept at alltimes at a uniform height.

The chief object of my invention is to enabl'e the guard to be adjustedby power aplied to it at any point along its length, so that in the caseof a street-car the guard may be raised and lowered by an attendantstandingjgat either end of the guard. Usually a guard of this characterof suflicient length to obstruct all the side entrances of a street-carrequires the services of two persons, one at each end, to raise andlower them. My improvement enables one attendant to easily raise andlower the guard while standing at either end of it and withoutnecessarily taking the trouble to station'himself at the central portionof the guard.

My invention is not limited to use in connection with street-cars'andmay be used in any desired relation. Various other changes in thearrangement of the essential parts of the guard-supporting means may bemade without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In Fig. 3 I show means for locking the guard in its raised position, sothat it will not be liable to move downward prema' turely. The meanshere shown comprise a spring-catch r on one of the side uprights of thecar and a stud or projection s on the 'uard. The catch 1* is preferablyformed like the catch for an umbrella-runner, so that the projections inmoving upwardly displaces the catch, which springs out under theprojection and engages it to prevent downward movementof the end of theguard on which the projection is located, the equalizing supportingmeans at the same time preventing the opposite end from dropping. Theguard may be released by imparting to it' anendwise movement suflicientto withdraw the projection from the catch, this movement being permittedby the flexibility of the cords. To prevent the guard from being thusmoved accidentally, a spring 25 may be attached to one of the uprightsin position to bear on a projection 11. on the guard and yieldinglyprevent endwise movement of the guard in the direction required todisen-' gage the projection s from the catch. An operator by graspingany part of the guard can move it endwise against the pressure of thespring t, and thus disengage the projection 8 from the catch.

It is obvious that the catch may be located so that one end of the guardwill slide over and displace the catch, the latter springing out toengage the lower edge of the guard, as shown in Fig. 4, which also showsthe spring t arranged to bear against the opposite end of the guard. Thespring tmay be omitted, however, and the tension of the cords may berelied upon to hold the guard in engagement with the catch, the guardbeing movable endwise to a limited extent to release it from the catchand returned to its catch-engaging position by the tension of the cords.The catch 1" may be rigid, so that the guard in passing by it isdisplaced endwise'by the catch and then returns to position to engagethe catch.

I claim 1. In combination, an elongated guard and guard-supportingmeans, comprising a pair of independent cords, vertically-immovablesupports there'for on the car, andcordengaging members on the guard, thecords extending from said supports to the guard, said means havingprovisions for transmit ting from end to end of the guard, movementimparted to either end, and for equalizing the height of the endsof'the' guard under all adjustments of which itis capable.

2. In combination, an elongated guard, and guard-supporting means,comprising a pair of independent cords, supports therefor, andcord-engaging members 'onthe guard, the cords having supporting-bightswhich prevent independent downward movement of the ends of the guard,and holding-down bights which prevent independent upward movement ofsaid ends.

3. In combination, an elongated guard, a pair of cords supporting thesame, and sup ports for said cords, each cord being attached at one endto a support above one end of the guard, and at the other end toasupport below the opposite end of the guard, and cord guiding anddeflecting members on the guard, whereby the central portions/of thecords are caused toextend lengthwise of the guard.

4. In combination, an elongated guard, supporting means comprisingflexible cords engaged with the guard, and supports for said cords, thesaid means having provisions for equalizing the height of the ends ofthe guard, and means for locking the guard in a raised position, saidmeans being adapted to be rendered inoperative by an endwise movement ofthe guard.

5. In combination, an elongated guard, supporting means comprisingflexible cords engaged with the guard, and supports for said cords, thesaid means having provisions for equalizing the height of the ends ofthe guard, and a locking member adapted to engage the guard, the latterbeing longitudinally movable to disengage it from the catch. 6. Incombination, an elongated guard,

supporting means comprising flexible cords engaged with the guard, andsupports for said cords, the said means having provisions for equalizingthe height of the ends of the guard, a locking member adapted to engagethe guard, and means for yieldingly holding the guard in engagement withsaid member.

In testimony whereof I have afiiXed my signature in presence of twoWitnesses.

GEORGE A. METCALF. Witnesses:

C; F. BROWN,

E. BATCHELDER.

